Unplanned career paths in climate

𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗼, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯—𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗱. So many solutions, so many paths. I made plenty of mistakes before I found my niche. If I could go back, here’s what I wish I knew: 🔬 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀. I started with books like ‘How to Avoid a Climate Disaster’ by Bill Gates and Speed&Scale by John Doerr. These books were helpful, but were very tech and VC-centered perspectives. Project Regeneration’s Cascade of Solutions was ultimately a better, more objective, and comprehensive resource. 📕 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀. Work on Climate’s #i-got-a-job channel is full of successful climate transition journeys by engineers, designers, marketers, PhD candidates, and more. 👋 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. Terra was mine, but My Climate Journey (MCJ), Work on Climate, or Job Search Councils are great options. 😡 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. What do you want to protect from climate change? Who do you want to build for? What pisses you off? Your answers can point you to your niche. ⚓ 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲. If possible, keep your role & location the same while switching to climate—it makes the transition easier. 🚗 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀: come up with 2-3 ideas for where you might fit. This could be a climate solution (residential solar), a type of organization (large environmental nonprofit), or even a way to effect change in your current role. Use networking, side projects, or small actions to validate your fit. 🤝 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲: The Open Door Climate directory is full of folks happy to chat. After many twists & turns, I focused on software product management roles at climate tech startups where business and climate incentives were aligned. This led me to organizations like food waste and renewable energy, and away from areas like carbon removal. What climate niches are you interested in? How are you finding where you fit?

Want to break into climate? I’ve had over 200 career calls with climate job seekers within the past year. Here are the 4 most commonly asked questions and my best answers: ⭐ How can I get a head start in college?  • Focus your coursework and internships on an expertise/industry pair, like marketing and sustainable fashion, business and regenerative agriculture, or data science and energy. • If you can’t decide on a niche, build versatile skills like finance, engineering, design, and sales. These skills are needed across climate-focused organizations. • Most recommended internship board: EDICT Internship Program by Elemental Excelerator 💫 How can I switch to climate from another industry? • Opportunities can be found in solution-focused organizations (e.g., Pachama, Kevala), sustainability/CSR teams (e.g., Carhartt, Adobe), and governmental offices (e.g., NYC Department of Environmental Protection (NYC DEP), US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)). • Many people try to overhaul their entire career. Instead, try changing only one variable at a time: seek a similar role in a new industry or a new role in a familiar industry (eg; marketing in fashion → marketing at a SaaS company like Recurate). • Mentorship, freelancing, and certificates can bridge the gap in industry experience. • Most recommended mentorship opportunities: Third Derivative and GrowthMentor ✨ How do I choose a niche?  • Standing out in climate requires being a near-perfect fit. Find the intersection of what you're good at, what you love, what you can be paid for, and what's needed across climate efforts. • Hop on career calls with folks across domains and industries to learn more about the day-to-day of their roles. • Most recommended starting points for market research: Climatebase, Work on Climate, CareerOneStop, and Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) 🌎 Do I need to join a program like Terra.do, Work on Climate, or OnePointFive (opf.degree)?  • These programs are helpful but not necessary. Free resources like coaching calls, videos, and podcasts can be valuable too. • Remember that “climate” isn’t really a standalone job! Consider how you can provide value to a climate-focused team and focus on building credibility in your desired solution sector (energy, agriculture, etc.). • Most recommended programs: Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Reforge, and Stanford University's certificates. -- Interested in a free careers session? • Check out the Work on Climate Expert Office Hours list and the #OpenDoorClimate list, launched by Daniel Hill. Interested in breaking into climate as a marketer? • Here's a comprehensive guide I put together: https://lnkd.in/gUqyFh_b I did my best to keep this post short. If anybody has more they’d like to add for climate job seekers, please add it to the comments. Thank you! Illustration by @tatooine_girl

Starting a Career in Climate feels like being lost in the desert. To find water, you must first ignore everyone telling you this 👇 → If you try hard enough, it’ll work. → Just apply for more jobs → It’s a numbers game. → Next week is better. Do this instead 👇 1️⃣ Fundamentals First Look at the entire climate economy. Pick two sub-sectors. 2️⃣ Find your Transferable Skills Most people completely underestimate their professional skills. Write down the answer to: “What am I really good at and why?” 3️⃣ Find your Pitch Find somebody doing your “future” job in a climate company. Ask them how they do their job. Learn the language of a climate company in your target sector. And then use that intel to refine your pitch. 4️⃣ Think Skills-Sector Fit. Not Impact. Everyone wants to work on something with a huge CO2 impact. BUT Don’t re-invent yourself so you can work in a “big impact” sector. Go where your skills fit best. Because the best impact is the impact that happens. Not the impact you keep chasing but never materializes. Use this list to find water in the desert. And make yourself successful 🙌 ---- PS. I’m Marco Morawec. I up-skilled 1,000s of people to transition into new careers. I’m doing the same for Climate now. 👉 Follow me ( Marco Morawec) and my company Climate Drift for Stories + Strategies + Resources to launch your Climate Career.

I frequently get asked by friends, colleagues, and even strangers how to pivot or start a career that moves the needle on climate. Most recently, I had a conversation with Hari Kukreja, a recent Cambridge sciences graduate, and realized my guidance has changed over time. It’s no longer about sacrificing income or lifestyle to make an impact; the landscape has shifted dramatically. Full article: https://lnkd.in/gb-pYrsX I grappled with the same question thirty years ago. I was passionate about the environment but couldn’t find a clear path forward that matched my skills and needs. I ended up building a global career in tech, occasionally working on projects like solar in Japan, wind energy in Quebec, and zero-emission mining in Ontario. I tried to get my global company to put serious time and resources into the low-carbon economy of the future, and failed. Today, the opportunities in the low-carbon economy are vast. Whether it's in electric vehicles, renewables, or energy efficiency, there’s room for almost any profession—engineering, law, finance, software development, and more. You don’t have to compromise on salary or location anymore to make a meaningful contribution to solving the climate crisis. My mentoring advice boils down to three key principles:  1. Know your five priorities—what drives you and makes you want to get up in the morning. 2. Always be learning three new things—keep evolving as the world changes around you. 3. Don’t close doors prematurely—explore opportunities, even if they don’t seem like an immediate fit. Hari, for example, has a strong foundation in STEM, team and leadership experience as captain of Cambridge’s top-level cricket team, cleantech alignment and networking via his co-presidency of the Cambridge University Energy Technology Society, international exposure from his time in Singapore and the UK, and clearly the willingness and drive to cold call people to make stuff happen. He’s already positioning himself for success in the clean economy, and I’m confident he’ll thrive. If you're in the climate or clean energy space, I encourage you to open a door for him. For those of you feeling stuck or wanting to make a difference, this is your call to action: understand your core priorities, keep learning, and be open to new opportunities. The low-carbon economy is growing fast, and there’s no shortage of ways to make an impact while building a fulfilling career. #career #gigeconomy #future #change #climateaction #business